Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-03-02
EARTHQUAKES.
.n,np About the Stability OF
the Earth.
r.o,n Soyi6ner's for March.

a,ast ia an error-an error which
'",.os from the incapacity OF our senses
% snnreciste any but the most palpable
vi at the same time, most excepuoua
~ ,,,ovemerts. The idea of terra frms
vaion0s with the ancient belief tnat tnt
or,h was the centre OF the universe. IL
&C. Indeed. by their mobility that the con
!!?1ants survive the uGceaslng assaults OF
.he ocean waves, and the continuous
Inv wesring which the rivers and gla'
ciers bring about.
ri1 Ware IL not that the continents grow
wsrd from age to age, at rate which
uP,ransates for their rosion, there would
WV, Lands fit for q theatre of life; II
~ ne had grown too slowly, their natural
,,1as the waves and rain, would nave
snv, them TO the ocean level; If too fast,
~ would lift new surfaces into the re-
Iio1s or eternal cold. AS it Is, the In
snoaant rowth has been so we'll measured
crre needs that for hundred million
voars more or less, the lands have
ssfnrned the stage tor prosperous lie.
This upward growth, when measured
n terms of human experience, Is
slow: it probably does not ex-
cned on the average, one 1901 IN tnree
~ 600 wears. The rate varies in times
M "
men A glacial sheet is imposed on the
oontinent-as 1t was, in the immediate
nast on the northern part Of North
kmerics-a wide area of the lce-laden
iand sank beneath the sea, 10 recover Its
iavaI wheU the depressing burden was
rCmoved. Still the tendency OF the corti-
nents is to elevation, and even the tenn
norary sinking of one. portion OF their
srea ia probably, in all cases, compen-
sated by uplIfts on another part by which
new realms are won from the sea.
OSCILLATIONS or THE EARTH'S CRUST.
Vine among these oscillations of the
sarth we NAV notice the slow up or down
movements which are probably OF the
same General nature and of the same
s~ipin as the movements which build the
continents. only much more RAPID; 80
rapid. indeed, that they may be OBJ
served from decade to decade, or, at
least. from century to century. In this
class we include the down-sinking of the
coast of New Jersey, the uprising OF
the Northern part OF scandinavia, or the
oscillation OF the shore on the coast of the
Bav of Naples. These movements which,
though in a geological sense rapid, rarely
chance the level of the land more than q
foot or two in century, appear to be
divided into three distinct classes as fol-
lows: First, those which are due to the
imposition of heavy weight upon
the earth's surface or to the re-
moval of such a weight. a good
case of this is the deep depression
of the Northern part OF North America,
where the glacial sheet came upon 1t, and
Its rapid re-elevation when the ice melted
away. Next, those which are due to the
fora alton of great fault or break
through the rocks % they are showed
about by the cOmpressiYe forces which
build mountain CHAINS And, finally
those which are due to the movements OF
volcanic gases and the lava which they
propel toward the crater, whence, in
time, they are to be discharged.
OF these slow movements the most in
terestiDg, be cause the best known, Is that
which is shown by the ruins of the tenn
pie of Jupiter Scraps, near Naples. We
see by the evidence of these ruins that
the temple has sunk down since the Chris
tan era, so that the marine ANIMALS bored
into the marble columns at the height OF
more than twenty feet above the present
level OF the sea; it then rose up
to its original level, aud is now
again sinking at the rate of one
inch in three or four years. A similar
movement connected with the process OF
mountain building has been observed at
6uhac0, about forty miles to the north
Of Rome. A hundred years or 80 ago the
church Of JENNIE was invisible from Su-
biaco, while now it ia in plain view over
the summit OF the Intervening mountain.
This change can only be explained by an
alteration in the height of the mountain
arches of this district.
The Distribution OF EARTHQUAKES.
In nf
crust, SO far as the brief historic record
goes to show, earthquakes of an In
tensity menacIng to man are limited
to certain regions which probably do not,
altogether, include more than one-fourJh
Of the area OF the lands, though shocks of
sless degree OF violence appear to be
common % every part of the surface
OF the continents. The regions
Of recurrenC shocks OF considerable
Violence are so irregularly distributed
taat they cannot be adequately note d in
ms brief essay. They include, IN Europe,
Iceland. Portugal, Spain, and Southern
Italy; the region of tie Lower Danube,
and some of the islands of the Grecian
archipelago. In Asia, the larger part of
ASIA Minor, several limited areas in Hin
IuysIan, the greater part of the eastern
nIlOral region OF ASIA, and the islands OF
The Japanese and Malayan Archlpelagoes
are subjected TO destructive Shocks.
In AREA there is, save in Egypt. little
architecture to suffer from earthquake
disturbance, and even little history 10 re
SoTd II. Egypt seems to have been,
VI Inc whole, singularly exempt from
great earthquakes, while the west
ein portlon OF the Mediterranean face
Vi tAe continent shares The disturbances
rom which the Spanish peninsula
aas repeatedly suffered. The vast AUS
Hslsn and POlyneslan district OF the Pa
oIuc anords number of regions nj great
ssItoquake activity, of which New Z4a.
ANU 10 the only one where we have any,
ttAIng IKE good observations for even a
lew score years. 1t may he said, how
sseI' mat the greater part of this vast
; nlga seems to be more exempt from these
,ruicdtiohs OF activity in the crust than
ssrlh's surface.
nolIn and south America. The Obvious
,esem6lances III the physical confiyura.
HY1 OIL THESE continents lead us to expect
= TiiArhess IN their conditions of stability.
a, A,' resem blance in q certain measure
tbaa.S' ne western shore OF both of
gros, Ve,ohVlnents, the seward face of the
fbo IN. Norullleran range OF mountains. is
wbo Seat oil the most frequent and, on the
wiz Tue most energetic disturbances
~ cn occur within their limits. while
me- Eastern shore of each is COM
Tbn@"Vely little assailed by shocks.
trio, hOrtnern, or Venezuelan, dts
snHs. Oh south America, which is
ta,n lily MY the seat Of an active noun
IN ths sioWtn' OF which there is no parallel
recnrrant . a continent, ia district OF